PressClub USA · Article.

Press Release

Press Kit

Speech

Fact & Figures

+ Filter

BMW Team RLL Qualifies Second and Third at Long Beach

Sat Apr 12 05:59:00 CEST 2014 Press Release

Archiv

Woodcliff Lake, N.J. – April 11, 2014 . . . BMW Team RLL equaled its best qualifying effort of the young 2014 TUDOR United SportsCar Series by placing its BMW Z4 GTLM machines in the second and third starting positions for tomorrow’s Sports Car Showcase at Long Beach race.

Sports

·

National Motorsports

Press Contact.

Downloads.

Related Links.

Woodcliff Lake, N.J. – April 11, 2014 . . . BMW Team
RLL equaled its best qualifying effort of the young 2014 TUDOR United
SportsCar Series by placing its BMW Z4 GTLM machines in the second and
third starting positions for tomorrow’s Sports Car Showcase at Long
Beach race.

Switching places from Sebring, today’s 15-minute session saw Bill
Auberlen qualify the No. 55 Z4 in second with a lap of 1:18.091
minutes around the 1.968-mile, 11-turn temporary street circuit.
Auberlen’s lap was only .152 seconds in arrears of the pole sitter Jan
Magnussen, in the No. 3 Corvette. Dirk Müller drove the No. 56 Z4 to
third with a 1:18.246 minute lap.

Last year BMW Team RLL raced to a 1-2 finish at Long Beach in only
the second race for the new BMW Z4 GTE. With podium finishes at both
the Rolex 24 at Daytona and the 12 Hours of Sebring this year BMW Team
RLL leads the GTLM Team and Driver points standings.

“It was an excellent qualifying effort and I think everyone is
pleased with the cars,” said Bobby Rahal, Team
Principal. “A good day today should make for a better day tomorrow.”

Bill Auberlen, driver No. 55 Z4 GTLM – (2nd) –
“Judging from last year, we have definitely made a step forward. We
were on pole for most of the session, but at the end the Corvette went
by. Today we were P2 in the first practice, P1 in the second and now
P2 in qualifying. If we can just stay in that area tomorrow I’ll be
happy. It’s always a tough race here and this is an extremely
competitive field. We’ve been consistently at the front today and I
hope that bodes well for another great finish.”

Dirk Müller, driver No. 56 Z4 GTLM – (3rd) – “I had a
lack of grip in the second practice so we lost valuable preparation
time for qualifying. We were definitely behind, but well done to
everyone on a great recovery. We can now focus all of our attention on
the race.”

Part of the Long Beach Grand Prix weekend that is celebrating its
40th anniversary this year, the Sports Car Showcase at Long Beach
takes the green flag at 6:05 p.m. ET on Saturday, April 12th. Fox
Sports 1 will carry live coverage of the race beginning at 6:00 p.m.
ET. Follow BMW Team RLL on Twitter at @BMWUSARacing for
“from-the-pit-box” updates all weekend. More information on the
program can be found at www.bmwusa.com and www.imsa.com.

BMW Group In America

BMW of North America, LLC has been present in the United States since
1975. Rolls-Royce Motor Cars NA, LLC began distributing vehicles in
2003. The BMW Group in the United States has grown to include
marketing, sales, and financial service organizations for the BMW
brand of motor vehicles, including motorcycles, the MINI brand, and
the Rolls-Royce brand of Motor Cars; DesignworksUSA, a strategic
design consultancy in California; a technology office in Silicon
Valley and various other operations throughout the country. BMW
Manufacturing Co., LLC in South Carolina is part of BMW Group’s global
manufacturing network and is the exclusive manufacturing plant for all
X5 and X3 Sports Activity Vehicles and X6 Sports Activity Coupes. The
BMW Group sales organization is represented in the U.S. through
networks of 339 BMW passenger car and BMW Sports Activity Vehicle
centers, 139 BMW motorcycle retailers, 119 MINI passenger car dealers,
and 35 Rolls-Royce Motor Car dealers. BMW (US) Holding Corp., the BMW
Group’s sales headquarters for North America, is located in Woodcliff
Lake, New Jersey.

Information about BMW Group products is available to consumers via
the Internet at: www.bmwgroupna.com

Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing

BMW’s partner, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, based in Hilliard,
Ohio and co-owned by three-time IndyCar Champion and 1986 Indianapolis
500 winner Bobby Rahal, Mi-Jack co-owner Mike Lanigan and CBS LATE
SHOW host David Letterman, has been competing for over two decades,
compiling 28 victories, 42 poles and three series championships (1992,
2010, 2011) as well as claiming an Indianapolis 500 victory (Buddy
Rice in 2004). In 2009 the team joined BMW of North America to
campaign the new BMW M3 in the American Le Mans Series. In 2010 the
team won both the Manufacturer and Team Championships in the GT
category. In 2011 the team swept all three GT titles - Manufacturer,
Team and Driver.

CO2 emission information.

Fuel consumption figures based on the EU test cycle, may vary depending on the tyre format specified. Further information on official fuel consumption figures, specific CO2 emission values and the electric power consumption of new passenger cars is included in the “Guideline for fuel consumption, CO2 emissions and electric power consumption of new passenger cars", which can be obtained from dealerships and here as PDF.

Further News for: Sports · National Motorsports

Related Video Content.

Fuel consumption figures based on the EU test cycle, may vary depending on the tyre format specified. Further information on official fuel consumption figures, specific CO2 emission values and the electric power consumption of new passenger cars is included in the “Guideline for fuel consumption, CO2 emissions and electric power consumption of new passenger cars", which can be obtained from dealerships and here as PDF.